'The frustration is the lawsuit never should have been brought'

Sep. 20, 2012

Washington Park in Over-the-Rhine / Rebecca Butts for The Enquirer

Written by

Mark Curnutte and Dan Horn

The Cincinnati Park Board this morning voted to eliminate a practice that had allowed it to enact rules simply by putting them on a sign, but a federal lawsuit against the park will not be dropped.

The vote to strike Park Board Rule 28 came two weeks after three Over-the-Rhine residents filed suit that challenges how rules were adopted and rules allegedly in effect in Washington Park but no other city park.

The suit claimed Rule 28 gave the park board virtually unlimited authority to enact rules without public discussion or a vote.

The board decided today to enact any future rules through a board vote.

“Today, the park board realized they did not have a winning battle and struck down Park Rule 28,” said Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition. “This is a win for the people and for democracy.

“This means that rules, including those for Washington Park and any park in Cincinnati, will have to be created in front of the public with the ability for public input.”

The lawsuit, filed Sept. 4, accuses the park board of improperly adopting the rules and surrendering too much of its authority to the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC), a nonprofit development company that manages Washington Park. The suit claims rules that had prohibited rummaging in trash and dropping off food or clothing were created in an unconstitutional manner and discriminated against certain classes of people.

“The frustration is the lawsuit never should have been brought,” Deputy City Solicitor Aaron Herzig said this afternoon. “The signs had been taken down, and we were trying to work it out with residents.

“Inexplicably, they sued the city over the signs anyway. Hopefully, with (the press release) they sent out today, this will be the end of it.”

The city is expected to file a motion to have the suit dismissed now that Board Park Rule 28 has been struck down, but attorney Jennifer Kinsley, who represents the three residents in the suit, said it would go on.

“Gosh, no,” she said when asked if it would be dropped. “There have been other points of confusion in the park. The situation is so fluid. Rules have gone up and come down. We need a legal resolution.”